2.For a pick me up in the afternoon… Put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours. Slice some and put in your water bottle.

3. If you rub a cucumber slice along your bathroom mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Place a few slices of cucumber in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemical in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries by European trappers, traders and explorers for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don’t have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don’t have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber will react with the boiling water and released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown to reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don’t have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the photochemical will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a ‘green’ way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but it won’t leave streaks and won’t harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

Grandparents are uniquely positioned to teach some real life skills. “Often grandparents can spend more quiet time with grandkids than parents, so this is a great opportunity to pass along a little wisdom,” suggests Karen Wrolson, M.S., a life coach and founder of Excite Ed!, an educational and motivational consultancy. Sitting, talking and really listening to your grandchildren as you share life lessons can make a big difference in how they live their lives—and often they’ll listen to you when they won’t listen to their parents. Four lessons you should teach:

Lesson #1: Life isn’t always easy

What it teaches: Empathy. Tuning in to another person’s perspective is at the heart of empathy—and when taught correctly it might prevent future bullying.

How to begin: Doing a good turn for others is a classic way to explain empathy and also make a difference in your community. “Set up a regular volunteer activity so your grandchild can learn about people in need and see that he has the ability to change someone’s life for the better,” says Wrolson. Raking a neighbor’s leaves every week, helping to build a wheelchair ramp at a church or packing care bags for women and kids in a homeless shelter are just a few ways to start. As you work, share a time when you were in need of help or understanding. Your hard-earned experience on the receiving end of empathy makes the lesson real to your grandkids.

Lesson #2: Be thankful for everything

What it teaches: Gratitude. It’s more than just saying ‘thanks’ when someone hands you something. Strive to teach kids to appreciate all they have.

How to begin: “Have your grandchild thank people fully, going beyond a simple ‘thanks’, and express why they like the gift or how they’ll use it,” says Wrolson. Make a greater impact by reviving the ancient art of the thank-you note—still an important skill in the digital age—and help her to pen one. You could also make a point of expressing gratitude when you’re together, even for the smallest pleasures (green lights on the road, beautiful sunshine, a smile at the grocery store).

Much has been said over the years about the difficult mother-in-law – but what if the daughter-in-law (or son-in-law, for that matter) is the one who sets the tone of contention and friction? If your relationship with your daughter or son-in-law is difficult and you feel like you’re trying to walk through a minefield every time you get together, you’re going to need to tread carefully. Accepting the fact that s/he is the one your child chose to marry is important, and there are things you can do to “grease the wheels”, paving the way to a smoother sail in this tricky relationship.

Respect your child’s choice. Your son/daughter loves this woman, no matter that you can’t understand what he sees in her. Remember the old song, “When a man/woman loves a woman…If she is bad, he can’t see it, She can do no wrong, Turn his back on his best friend if he put her down.” This is absolutely truth so in dealing with her, no matter what your true feelings are, you must never say a word against her to your son.

Stay cordial at all times. She may be a clueless, crude boor. She may be vulgar and crass. She may swear like a sailor while your family is a church-going, proper group. She may actually be unkind, cruel, or a manipulative, controlling narcissist, not caring about imposing on others as long as she gets whatever she wants. There is nothing you can do about this. Just be polite, as you would be to a stranger.

The only real exception to this is if you have little kids (your son has siblings who have children, perhaps) around and she’s cursing like crazy – then you might say, mildly, “Ooh – can we watch the language while the kids are here? They get into trouble for saying that word and I don’t want them to pick it up here. Thanks.” No matter how creepy she is, stay calm, cool, poised, and polite.

Remember that she may be the mother of your grandchildren. She will control access to any offspring of your son’s that result from the marriage. Your best bet to retain visitation is to maintain a cordial, amicable relationship – bite your tongue if you must to remain civil. Don’t criticize her parenting, don’t get angry if she changes plans at the last minute, leaving you out in the cold when you had planned to have the kids over for the weekend. This is one of the ways that certain people control situations and others (see How to Recognize a Manipulative or Controlling Relationship) – the best you can do is to understand that she has the ultimate say over what happens with her children. Don’t kid yourself that you have a lot of rights: courts do not tend to side with grandparents unless the mother and/or father are declared unfit or have been arrested for a felony. Just try as best you can to keep your relationship workable, no matter how bloody your tongue gets.

Recipes

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Mother-in-law tips

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